


The Christmas "Curse"

by RamblingsofATeenageFangirl



Category: Julie and The Phantoms (TV)
Genre: Merry Christmas!, This is for the 2020 JATP Christmas Exchange!, caleb being an absolutely terrible schemer and villain, for @emotional-support-angel on tumblr!, little bit of willie angst sorry y'all, this is basically all familial/platonic stuff, you get crumbs of juke and willex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:40:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,869
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27865518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RamblingsofATeenageFangirl/pseuds/RamblingsofATeenageFangirl
Summary: As a Christmas gift that Caleb hopes will complicate things, he makes the boys visible to Ray, Carlos, and Victoria. Initial reactions definitely weren't the best, and Caleb's wish to complicate things was surely granted. Ray now knows that three ghosts have been living in his house, and he doesn't know how to feel about it.On the other end, the boys are happy that they don't have to hide anymore, and are just hoping that Ray lets them stay. But for Reggie specifically, he finally feels like he has a happy family. And that was the best Christmas gift he could ask for, even if Caleb intended it to be a trick. This Christmas "Curse" only made them happier.It only made their family bigger.It only made it so they had more people to love.
Relationships: Alex & Julie Molina & Luke Patterson & Reggie, Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Carlos Molina & Reggie, Carlos Molina & Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina & Reggie, Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Ray Molina & Reggie
Comments: 4
Kudos: 85
Collections: jatpdaily secret santa 2020





	The Christmas "Curse"

**Author's Note:**

> this is part of the JATP Christmas Exchange! Merry Christmas, Charlie/Elm (idk if you prefer one or the other). I'm posting it here for other people to enjoy too! Also I didn't mean for this to be almost 7000 words that just kinda happened.  
> Merry Christmas y'all!

This story begins in The Hollywood Ghost Club, with a scheme of Caleb's to get the boys kicked out of the Molina home. Of course, it wouldn't quite end up how he'd planned, but we'll get there later. 

Caleb sat in the chair of his office, tapping his fingers against his desk as the brown-haired ghost skater watched him closely, sitting in a chair on the other side of the desk. "Why am I here?" The skater questioned, running his fingers through his hair, bouncing his leg nervously. Caleb Covington calling you to his office was _never_ a good thing, and he was quite anxious for whatever the more powerful ghost had in store for him. Not anxious in the good, either. He was scared. 

He just hoped that he wouldn't have to hurt his boyfriend in order to follow whatever orders Caleb would give him. It technically wouldn't end up that way, but the intention the other spirit had did involve this. "You're going to help me. We're gonna have that little ghost band here just in time for Christmas." Caleb claimed, seemingly confident in whatever plan his evil brain had come up with. 

Willie frowned. He should've known that this was coming. Since the stamp incident, they had left the boys alone. So many months of just letting them live...or whatever they did as ghost was called, without bothering them in the slightest. It was immature and naive to think that Caleb Covington was just gonna accept the loss. He was gonna keep going, scheme after scheme, with back to back tricks and plans to get them under his power. Willie had faith that he'd never succeed, though. "What's the plan?" he sighed. He didn't have a choice, and he knew that, he had to help. 

"I know that you've been seeing them, the blonde specifically," Caleb began. Willie thought he had gotten away with that, his face slightly pink as he nodded. "I want you to give them early presents laced with magic, it'll place a curse on those receiving." 

"W-what will the curse do?" Willie sat up, now concerned. A curse can be as harmless as a silly prank, or as serious as having your soul stolen. 

"It'll make them visible to the rest of the Molina family. Not everyone, just them," Caleb replied, picking at his fingernails a bit, leaning back in his spinning chair. 

"But Julie's dad doesn't know about them, I don't know if he'll let them stay." Willie's eyes widened, trying to figure out what he could do to stop this. 

"That's the point. What mortal is stupid enough to allow ghosts to stay in their home? Those boys surely wont realize that he can't force them out, and will leave the moment he freaks out, leaving them with no where to live..." Caleb trailed off, leaving Willie to add the rest together. When they were kicked out, Caleb would appear and offer them a place to stay in return for them joining the club. Willie _didn't_ want Alex to have the same fate as he did. 

As mentioned before, Willie didn't have a choice. The most he could do was pick good gifts to curse for them. 

\--

"There's snow, Alex!" 

Reggie was known for getting excited over small things. Giving him a small little trinket will make his day, and pretty weather would make him smile. "I know, Reg." Alex replied, turning the page in his book. Alex had found out that Julie used to be a bookworm as a kid, and often spent time reading her old books. 

"It's pretty."

"Mhm."

"We could build a snowman!"

"Maybe later, Reggie."

"Are you listening to me?" Reggie questioned, adjusting his position in the living room chair so that he could see Alex, instead of the view outside. 

"Yeah, sounds good." Alex didn't even glance up from his page. Reggie rolled his eyes, jumping up and pulling the book away from Alex's hands. "Hey!" Alex whined as Reggie snapped the book shut, "You didn't even mark my page." he pouted. Reggie stuck his tongue out, setting the hardcover book on the table, watching Alex lean forward to snatch it back up.

"We're ghosts, who could go literally anywhere, and you're sitting on a couch reading?" Luke appeared next to Alex on the couch, quickly observing the situation and stating his thoughts on it. 

"Yeah, don't you have a boyfriend to hang out with?" Reggie teased, watching Alex blush a bit. 

"You're sitting on a chair looking at snow, instead of going out and meeting other ghosts." Alex pointed out, avoiding the question. 

"Snow's better than reading." Reggie defended, looking to Luke. "Snow over books, right?" 

Luke quickly nodded in agreement, "Definitely. You can make stuff with snow, and attack people with it. You just...sit and read with books. Boring." 

Alex rolled his eyes, setting the book down on the coffee table. He didn't get the chance to retort, his thoughts being interrupted by three soft knocks against one of the windows. Reggie quickly jumped back onto the chair, pushing back the curtain and peeking through the blinds, taking in the picture of Willie with a few boxes stacked in his arms. Reggie noticed that he didn't exactly look the happiest to be there, which was weird, but he wouldn't say anything about it. 

"There's the boyfriend now," he glanced back at Alex with a smirk, causing him to blush again. He made motion, telling Willie to come in. Willie nodded , giving a thumbs up and an ingenuine smile. Willie appeared just inside the front door, coming over the couch where everyone was. 

"I brought gifts!" he cheered, sitting in the empty spot to the left of Alex. 

"Really?" Reggie was immediately excited, and happy. No matter what was in that box, he was happy that Willie had thought of him, and was giving him something. 

"Yeah, just some things I found. They reminded me of you guys. Merry early Christmas!" Willie was focusing on making himself sound happy, pretending that nothing was wrong. That he was okay with doing this. If Caleb found out that he told them something, after the first time ruining his plans, he was done for. Reggie seemed to be the only one that noticed something was up, but he had just assumed that he was having a bad day and he didn't wanna talk about it. 

So Reggie kept quiet, not knowing what he was getting himself into by doing so. 

Willie proceeded to pass out the gifts, one box for each of them. All three of the boys immediately began opening them, throwing the wrapping paper to the side, watching it disappear on it's own. Alex's eyes widened as he looked up to Willie with silent curiosity. "Magic wrapping paper. The box will disappear when you remove the gift, too." he explained. 

Reggie noticed that his box was a little smaller than the other two's, but he didn't mind. He lifted the white lid from his little box, his eyes looking over the multicolored braided bracelet inside. It had different charms on it, a little silver electric bass, a music note, a little pizza. All things related to his hobbies or things he liked. The actual band was made up of pastel shades of pink, purple, and blue. Reggie tied it around his own wrist, watching the box disappear. 

"Thanks, dude. This is really nice," Reggie said. Willie nodded silently. Reggie noticed his lack of a witty response, his usual silly way of saying 'you're welcome'. 

Willie seemed to be acting really off, but Reggie couldn't quite place what was wrong. He seemed to be in a rush to leave, too, convincing them to wear whatever they were given before leaving, claiming that he had things to attend to. He just didn't wanna be there when the curse set in. All three of them had gotten something wearable, clothes or an accessory. Reggie had his bracelet, Alex got a Christmas-themed hoodie, and Luke got a white beanie with his name stitched into it in black thread. They all really liked their gifts, but even the other two seemed to notice Willie's weird behavior by the time he was gone. 

"Was Willie acting weird to you guys?" Alex questioned once he was gone, looking between the other two. Luke and Reggie nodded simultaneously, the three of them agreeing with one another. 

"Caleb is probably just being weird, Willie gets stressed because of him. I'll talk to him about it once he's had a bit to cool off," Alex decided. 

"That's a good idea," Reggie said, fiddling with his bracelet a bit. 

"Yeah, you're probably right," Luke said. 

"Aren't I always?" Alex joked. This started a playful argument between them. Just like that, they agreed to figure out Willie's weird behavior later, and started having fun. Little did they know, the curse would set in just a few hours, and chaos would ensue from there. 

\--

Even once the curse had been put in affect, no one realized it until the following morning. It started with Reggie following his usual routine of sitting in the kitchen until Ray woke up, and he'd hang out with him, secretly doing small things to help him. Like putting his bread in the toaster for him, or starting the coffee machine when Ray forgot. Reggie liked helping people when he could. 

Alex and Luke would usually sleep in a bit later, remaining in the studio until there was a reason to leave. Sometimes that reason was to help Julie, or because they were bored. Or simply because they missed Reggie, who would often hang out around the house. 

"Who the _hell_ are you?" 

Reggie jumped, dropping the jar of jelly he was holding. He had just been moving things around in the kitchen so that Ray could find what he'd most likely need easier when he heard Ray's shocked voice. Reggie realized that there was no way that Ray was talking about him, because he couldn't see him. 

"I'm talking to you," Ray said after a moment of Reggie standing facing away from him. 

"M-me?" Reggie stuttered, turning around and facing away from the inside of the fridge. Ray nodded, looking him up and done. 

"What are you doing in my house? And why were you stealing my jelly, of all things?" Ray seemed to realize that the kid must've been harmless. They didn't seem to have a weapon, nor did they seem to have taken anything else from his home. The only thing they had done was go through his fridge. "If you need a meal, you could've knocked on the door and asked, we have snacks and leftover dinner from last night."

"No, I don't eat." Reggie corrected, quickly bringing his hand to cover his mouth when he realized how stupid that was. He bent down to pick up the plastic jar of jelly, which hadn't been harmed when it fell, setting it on the counter and closing the fridge. 

"Where do you live?" Ray questioned. 

"Here." Reggie winced right after his response, realizing that that was another dumb answer. It also felt wrong to lie, though. He was still trying to process how Ray could see him, and his first reaction to any question was to answer honestly. 

"JULIE!" Ray called up the stairs. Reggie sighed, crossing his arms and waiting for his bandmate to come running down the stairs. Julie glanced at him, playing it off as if she didn't see him, looking at her dad curiously. 

"What's up, dad?" 

"Do you know this kid? They were going through our fridge, and they claim to live here?" Ray motioned to Reggie. 

"I go by he/him," Reggie told him in a quiet voice, noting his use of gender-neutral pronouns and terms. Ray nodded, looking back to Julie, who had wide eyes, looking between them. 

"Do you know this _boy_?" Ray corrected. 

Instead of answering any of his questions, she asked one of her own. 

_"You can see him?"_

\--

"So the boys in your band? They're dead? And they've been living here?" 

Julie had gone through a very tough conversation trying to explain everything to him. "Basically? But you aren't supposed to be able to see them." she replied. 

Ray sat at his kitchen counter, Reggie and Julie on the other side. Ray's mind was currently blown, while Julie and Reggie were just trying to figure out how this was possible. Everyone was confused for different reasons. Meanwhile, Luke and Alex were sleeping through the chaos. 

"And you have been able to see ghosts this whole time? Is he really a ghost?" 

Julie nodded a bit, pulling her phone out of her pocket and jabbing Reggie's shoulder with it, demonstrating the fact that things went through him. "Carlos is gonna freak out." Ray rubbed at his head. 

"Actually," Reggie went to politely correct him, "You shouldn't be able to see us. I don't know if he will be able to."

"Or if you'll be able to see the other two." Julie added. 

As if on cue, Luke and Alex appeared, still in pajamas, by the door, going into the kitchen. "Yo, Reggie, stop bothering Jules and come help me build a snowman." 

"Do you think Ray and Carlos just aren't gonna notice a snowman appearing out of nowhere?"

"Chill, we can just have Julie say she made it," The two bickered as if Ray wasn't even there, Luke to Julie. "Jules, can you do that?"

"I don't know if I'll need too..." she trailed off, looking back to her dad, who had just witnessed ghost teleportation for the first time. Luke furrowed his eyebrows, noticing that Julie had replied to him verbally, not even whispering to him. He had expected a head nod, not her replying as if he was just another person. 

Then, he looked to Ray, who was staring right at him. "Can Ray _see_ us?" he whispered to Alex, seemingly panicky and confused. 

" _Yes_ , he can see us, you idiot," Alex groaned, smiling awkwardly after replying to Luke with an eyeroll. "Hi, Mr. Molinaaaa..." he trailed off, chuckling tensely. 

"Hi...um," Ray paused, looking to Julie. "Is the blond one Alex?" 

Julie nodded. "Hello, Alex. And Luke," he replied, addressing them with hesitancy. Like he wasn't supposed to be able to interact with him. Like his brain told him that it was wrong. 

"I know I'm not supposed to be able to see you guys, but can we worry about that later? I have a million questions." Ray spoke once Alex and Luke took their places next to Julie in the stools on the other side of the counter. 

"Of course you do." Julie replied, "What do you wanna know?" 

\--

Due to it being a random day of winter break, Carlos had remained at home. But, he didn't interrupt until he woke up hours after Ray found out about the boys. 

For a while, the boys and Julie sat there, explaining everything. How they met Julie, when they died. How they were visible to everyone when they played music. Ray made a comment that he recognized them now that Julie explained who they were. The brown haired one with the white beanie was the one who was always silently flirting with his daughter on stage. 

"Can they stay here?" Julie asked what they were all wondering. Ray looked at them, not knowing how to reply. 

"We don't eat! And we can do chores, if you want!" Reggie immediately said. He didn't wanna leave. 

"Where do they stay?" Ray questioned, ignoring Reggie's panicked statement. 

"In the studio." Julie replied, biting on her lip. She knew that they didn't have anywhere else to go, and she didn't wanna lose her closest friends. Ray was being asked to welcome three dead kids into his home just hours after realizing that they existed. He sighed, rubbing his temple. 

"If you want, we wont even come into the house." Alex spoke up.

"We just don't have anywhere else to go." Luke added, pulling a sad and worried face that made Ray feel bad immediately. 

Even if they were dead, they needed somewhere to stay, didn't they. "You're ghosts, right? Can't you sleep anywhere?" 

"Um...not really? You see, there's this evil ghost guy trying to steal our souls-" Julie glared at Reggie, causing him to cut himself off. 

"THERE'S EVIL GHOSTS?" Ray shouted, throwing his hand up exasperatedly. Ray had been completely convinced that ghost weren't real for a long time, and now he was being presented with evidence that they were, in fact, real. Followed up by the tiny little detail _evil ghosts exist._ Did they _expect_ him to take it super well? 

"Evil ghosts? Should I get my ghost hunting suppl-" Carlos stopped in his tracks the moment he got halfway down the stairs, his eyes wide as he looked at the three boys. "I can see the boy band ghosts now? Cool." 

Carlos made his way down the steps, sitting next to his dad. "Did you know about them already?" Ray questioned. 

"Yeah, Sunset Curve or whatever. Found the CD in the garage a few months ago. Anyways, what's for breakfast?" 

"First of all, breakfast was hours ago. Secondly, how come I never knew that he knew about y'all?" Julie looked at her brother, then at the ghosts sitting around her. 

"We may have forgotten to mention it." Reggie smiled sheepishly.

"Haunting my aunt and I made it obvious. I added it up, only after assuming it was a chef guy, though." 

Julie only seemed more confused by their responses, dropping the topic for now. "That's not the point. Can they stay, dad?"

"Yeah, can they stay?" Carlos repeated, looking to his dad. Ray looked between Julie and Carlos, their pleading faces. These kids, they may have been dead, but they were still just kids. Just like his own. If Rose was to somehow end up in the same situation in the afterlife, he'd want her to be given a home. 

Plus, they had already been here for months, and had done nothing but make Julie happy. 

"I guess...they can stay. Just, don't tell people, they'll think we're crazy. Especially not your aunt-"

As if she was summoned by Ray's words, the front door opened, revealing the very woman they were hiding this from, who carried a few bags in her hand.

"I brought cupcakes! They were on sale at the store." 

The boys stayed were they were, making the assumption that Victoria couldn't see them. "Pretend we aren't here, she can't see us." Alex instructed. 

"I sure as hell can, who are you?" 

"Hi Tiaaaa," Reggie turned around in his stool, facing her. 

"Who are you boys?" she asked, pausing. "You," she pointed to Reggie, coming forward. "You're in Julie's band."

Reggie was happy that Victoria recognized him, smiling. "I'm Julie's bassist," he nodded, "Reggie." 

"You two are in her band too! Don't you guys live in Sweden, what are you doing here?" 

Julie locked eyes with Ray, coming to a quick silent agreement. "They're visiting, Tia! They're going on a Christmas vacation nearby and are staying here for a few days." she replied, coming up with her fake explanation as she said it. 

"Yeah, right! We're visiting." Luke agreed. Tia came forward, smiling now, setting the bags on the counter. 

"Well, if I knew we were having visitors, I would've cooked something. Would you boys like cupcakes? Or actual food? How long have you been here?" 

"No thank you,"

"We're good."

"A few hours."

All three of the boys choose a different question to answer, replying back to back. Everyone else switched their eyes from one to another as they spoke. They three of them burst out laughing afterwards, getting rid of any awkwardness in the room. Victoria ended up staying a lot longer then planned, talking to the boys and asking them about Sweden. They had to keep lying. Turns out, they all had a really limited knowledge on Sweden and it's culture. She kept offering to make food for them, which they kept managing to avoid. 

Reggie enjoyed hanging out and talking to people besides just his bandmates, Julie's family was nice. They had managed to hide everything from Tia, waiting until she walked out the door to mention anything. 

"Can everyone see us now or something?" Alex questioned. 

"I don't know, we'll have to check. Luke?" Julie looked at him. 

"I'll be back," Luke nodded, poofing out. 

"Whoa! You guys can teleport?" Carlos asked, seemingly amazed. 

"Mhm." Alex nodded. 

The rest of that day went pretty well. Luke came back and informed them that not everyone could see them, it just seemed that Carlos, Ray, and Victoria could. Carlos and Ray continuously asked question after question, consistently curious about everything. None of the boys, especially Reggie seemed to mind. Ray was allowing three ghosts to stay in his house, he had to make sure they weren't dangerous in any way. 

Ray couldn't quite figure out why he agreed so quickly to let them stay. Maybe it was because he knew they made Julie happy. Maybe it was because they seemed like nice boys. Maybe it was because, even though they were dead, they were still kids, and they had no where else to go. Probably a mix of all three. 

He didn't wanna be the reason three ghost boys were homeless and in danger of being kidnapped by an evil ghost. 

Four days before Christmas, December 21st, the boys became visible to Julie's family. Caleb wanted the boys in his hands by Christmas day. Ray had four days to change his mind, and Caleb has four days to try and get him to change his mind. Let's see what schemes he comes up with to screw things up.

\--

"What do you _mean_ Ray's letting them stay?" Caleb exclaimed, spinning in his chair and facing Willie. It was the day after the discovery that the boy's could be seen. And to Caleb's dismay, everything had been going wonderfully. Reggie played video games with Carlos, Alex talked about books with Ray. Luke baked cookies with Julie and Victoria, somehow avoiding eating them through "I'm not hungry"'s and throwing away a cookie bit-by-bit so it looked like he was eating it. 

"Exactly that!" he replied, holding his hands up in mock-surrender. "I went over there, and they told me all about how Ray could see them, Carlos and Victoria too, and how they didn't know why. I told them it must be another ghost power of theirs, I don't know if they believed me." 

Caleb rolled his eyes, sighing. "I thought making them visible would play out differently. I need to make Ray think they're a problem, before he gets to close to them." 

The man paused, clicking his tongue a few times before coming to a conclusion. "You'll simply destroy something that matters to the Molina's, frame the boys for it-" Caleb was cut off by Willie's voice. 

"I don't wanna be involved in this anymore, please." he pleaded, obviously upset with the situation. He didn't wanna keep risking hurting his friends. He'd rather risk his whole existence then be the reason his boyfriend ended up homeless.

"Fine, I'll do it myself. You, stay in the club." Caleb ordered, standing up and straightening his shirt. 

"W-what? No!" Willie stuttered, eyes wide. 

"You're lucky I don't stomp on your soul instead," Willie gulped, seemingly coming to his senses when he remembered how much power Caleb had over him. "If you're not willing to work with me, and hurt your boyfriend, then you simply can't see him at all." 

Willie didn't get to put another word in, because Caleb poofed out. 

He hated this. 

\--

On December 23nd, the following morning, Ray Molina found half of his glass dishes in pieces all over his kitchen. "JULIE, CARLOS! AND EVERYONE ELSE?" he shouted throughout the house, not bothering with all the names. Two kids came running down the stairs, while three more poofed in around the kitchen. They all seemed confused at first, before looking around wide-eyed. 

"This ain't my fault, have fun investigating," Carlos laughed, going to leave the kitchen. 

"No, no, no. Everyone stays here until we find out what happened. Who would like to explain?" Ray crossed his arms, watching Carlos stop in place, roll his eyes, and sit on the steps. No one spoke up at first, looking at each other expectantly. It was before noon, and Ray had woken up to this mess. They all thought it was each other, not even considering the idea that someone else did this to cause chaos. "Anyone?" Ray asked, looking around. 

"I know you aren't my kids, and you're dead, but you're still gonna help me clean up if this is your fault," he threatened, motioning to the three ghost boys. Reggie held his hands up, like Willie had done to Caleb. 

"It wasn't me, and I've been with Alex and Luke since last night. We had dinner last night, and nothing was wrong then. It had to of been Julie or Carlos!" he explained, pointing to the one living bandmate. Julie's eyes widened as she gasped, watching her family and friends turn on her. 

"This wasn't me! Do I have any reason to smash our dishes? Besides not wanting to clean them, of course." She joked, attempting to lighten the mood with a joke. It didn't work. She looked at her father's blank face before correcting herself, "It wasn't me," she replied in a more serious voice. 

"Then who destroyed our kitchen? Someone's lying," Ray sighed, looking around. There was different colored glass everywhere. On the floor, counter, by the sink. He was glad three of the suspects couldn't get hurt, and that the other two stayed by the stairs.

"Do you think- is it possible?" Alex's sudden outburst didn't make sense. He stuttered, cutting himself off as he was thinking. 

"Finish your sentences, blonde boy." Carlos said, earning an annoyed glare from the ghost drummer. 

Alex looked to Reggie, locking eyes with him and communicating silently. They seemed to come to a silent agreement, speaking at the same time. 

_"Caleb."_

The band all seemed to be thinking once those words were spoken. "That's why some people can see you, Caleb tried to curse you guys. Did you see him, or Willie, before everything happened?" 

"Yeah," Alex confirmed. "He gave us gifts, wearable stuff. They must've been laced with some weird ghost magic, right?"

"What's the point of making us visible to Ray and Carlos?" Reggie asked, scratching his head. Ray and Carlos looked between them, not quite following their conversation with 100% understanding. "And breaking the dishes."

"He's trying to get us kicked out." Luke concluded, sighing. "And Willie was in on his plan."

Ray inturrupted whatever the next person was going to say, asking a question. "Who's Caleb? And Willie?"

"Evil ghost man and Alex's boyfriend," Luke explained. "It's the only reasonable explanation. But I'm confused, if the gifts were cursed, wouldn't the Molina's stop being able to see us when we stopped wearing the stuff?"

"Must be a long lasting curse. Once we wore it for a few hours it already set in," Alex explained. "And my boyfriend was the one who cursed us."

"Hey! I don't think the curse was that bad! I like hanging out with everyone!" Reggie said. 

"And I like you boys. But I don't like waking up to a destroyed kitchen. Can everyone help clean up?" Ray replied, looking between everyone. 

A chorus of "yes"'s and groans followed, before everyone got moving to help reorganize the kitchen. 

On December 23rd, another one of Caleb's plans failed. And proved how smarts the boys were. On December 23rd, Ray started to realize how much he cared about these boys. 

Not only did they make Julie happy, but they were willing to help out even when things weren't their fault. He trusted them not to lie, so he believed everyone when they agreed on the conclusion that it must've been this evil ghost dude trying to screw things up. The most he could do was protect his family. 

Even if it had grown by three people. Or rather, _ghosts._

\--

"Thank you, for letting them stay." 

Julie sat at the counter while Ray made dinner. Ray glanced over at her curiously, waiting for her to continue. "They're my band, my friends. I don't know how I'd keep going if they were gone. Plus, they were the ones to got me back into music."

"So far, they're harmless, and they make you happy. And Carlos too, I think. Reggie kind of acts like an older brother," he chuckled. "As long as we can keep that Caleb guy away, they can stay here as long as they want." 

"What are we gonna tell Tia?" Julie questioned, playing with the ends of her hair. 

"I'm not sure yet. I don't know how I kept my cool upon meeting three dead teenagers, and I doubt she will." He sighed. "She'll probably find out eventually, but I'd rather it be after she meets them and knows that they are harmless." Julie nodded, agreeing with his statement. 

They bother paused their conversation when they heard loud laughing from upstairs. Coming from Carlos's room. 

Julie giggled too, "Sounds like they're having fun." 

Julie was honestly shocked when her dad was so calm about everything. Though, she didn't doubt that he was freaking out on the inside. Or that thing's might've been a bit different if it had been three guys he didn't know instead of the boys he had seen preform with his daughter millions of times. She could tell that the fact that they were only a little older then her affected his thinking too. 

Ray felt bad, thinking about the fact that they died so young, and that they'd forever be just kids. The least he could do is give them somewhere where they could safely _be_ just kids throughout their after life. 

\--

Willie knew that he shouldn't be doing this. That he shouldn't be sneaking out of the club to apologize. But it was the least he could do, he had too. 

It was still December 23rd, but late at night now. He appeared outside of the studio, walking through the garage door. Luke and Reggie were gone, it was just Alex reading. Alex's head shot up at the noise, and he froze. 

"I'm sorry." he began. Willie wasn't sure if Alex had added up what happened yet, but he was fairly sure he was right in assuming that he had. "I don't have much time, I'm not supposed to be here. Or anywhere else besides the club, for that matter," He approached the couch where Alex sat slowly as he talked, continuing his apologetic words. "Caleb made me give you the cursed gifts and play into his plan. And lie to you about it. I really wish I didn't have to take part in any of it."

Alex slowly closed his book, setting it on the coffee table sat Willie sat next to him. "I know he owns your soul, and I know you can't just refuse. It isn't your fault. Plus, the plan didn't work,"

"I know," Willie smiled a bit. "I doubted it would, but it was still scary. I was risking hurting you when I gave you that stupid hoodie." he sighed. 

"I think the gifts were nice, even if they were cursed," Alex scooted closer to Willie. "Julie's family is nice. It's kinda cool that he have more people to talk to now. If anything, I should be thanking you. It was less of a curse," he paused, scooting closer to Willie. "And more of present. I never had a super loving family, neither did Reggie." he sighed, letting Willie take his hand and intertwine their fingers. 

"Now we both do." he leaned into Willie. "But next time you're forced into a scheme, just talk to us. We could've found a way around this," he chuckled, resting his head on his boyfriend's shoulder. Alex was sure he would've reacted differently if he wasn't given time to think things through. At first, he had been mad. Then, when he considered everything, his anger shifted to Caleb and Caleb only. Willie wasn't at fault and he knew that. 

"Okay, I'll talk to you next time. I promise," he rested his head on Alex's, taking in their closeness. He seemed to snap out of it, pulling away from Alex. "I can't stay, pass on my apology to everyone else," he jumped up, adjusting his shirt and brushing it off. "I probably won't be back for a while, I'm sorry I can't celebrate Christmas with you."

"It isn't your fault," Alex repeated, standing up and standing close to him. "Stay safe, and come back whenever you can safely. I'll see you whenever. Maybe next year?" 

"Maybe next year." Willie confirmed, stepping closer to him. He watched as Alex closed the gap and kissed him softly, hugging him after pulling away. 

"Maybe I'll see you by New Year's," he joked as Alex pulled away. 

"I'd like that." Alex nodded. Yeah, he understood why Willie couldn't stay around, but it still sucked. 

"Go have fun with you're new family," Willie smiled, walking backwards as he spoke. "I'll be back when I can." he promised.

And just like that, he was gone. And Alex was left with an apology and a kiss. 

At least they were both from the best guy in the world. 

\--

Carlos was starting to get used to having a secret big brother that no one could know about. Yes, Alex and Luke were pretty cool, but Reggie? He was awesome! 

He played video games, and would watch Starwars with him for hours at a time! Julie didn't do that stuff. The guy brother-bond type stuff that he hadn't gotten from anyone else. Reggie was fun, and never seemed to get annoyed with him. "That's unfair! No way a 90's rock dork is better at me in Minecraft!" he gasped, tossing his controller onto his bed as the red-tinted 'you died' screen popped up on his tv. 

"Nineties rock dork? Well _you're_ a 2000's gamer nerd, which isn't much better," Reggie insulted, setting his controller down. All Carlos did was pout with his crossed arms. "Rematch?" Reggie grabbed Carlos's controller, holding it up with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. Carlos took a breath, snatching it away and re spawning in-game.

"Of course. Any chance to beat you, Reg." 

"Oh, you're going _down_ , nerd." Reggie adjusted his position as the duel began. 

_"As if, dork."_

No matter how many times they beat each other in any of their silly games, no matter how many playful insults they threw at each other, they'd always offer a rematch and keep going. They may have only known each other for a few days, but that's the routine they had fallen into. 

Carlos had always known that ghosts were cool. But Reggie was better then he expected. 

\--

"Do you like Luke?" 

Julie almost choked on her cookie when Victoria asked that question. "Um, why?" 

Ray seemed curious too, leaning forward and waiting on the response. "You act different around him then the other two. With Reggie and Alex, it's more of a brotherly relationship." Victoria replied. Julie hoped her blush wasn't noticeable. 

"Uh...is there an option to opt out of the question?" she joked nervously, playing with the ends of her hair again. The boys were all off doing their own thing, leaving her with her aunt and dad for lunch and cookies. 

"I suppose so. Just know, if he hurts you, there's a graveyard down the street." Victoria joked back. Julie and Ray started laughing, that being more funny to them then to Tia, knowing the irony in that. 

Julie had thought that the conversation was over when Ray changed the subject, but of course, her father had brought things up again when Victoria was gone and they were doing the dishes together. Or rather, the dishes that were left after Caleb's failed scheme. As of now, it seemed that Caleb had given up, leaving them alone for the time being. 

He'd surely have more after the holidays, surely. 

"So....how does dating a dead guy work?" Ray asked, seemingly amused. Julie rolled her eyes. 

"We aren't dating, and it's complicated." she admitted. 

"You age, he doesn't. You just discovered a few months ago that you could touch him at all, _and_ what would you tell other people?" 

Julie dried a plate, setting it on the stack and letting Ray place them in the cabinet. "I know, it's weird. I'm not sure how things are gonna work out. All I know is that I care about him, in a different way then the other two. And if he cares about me too, then we will find a way to make it work." she smiled a bit, shrugging. 

Flynn constantly reminded her how complicated things would get, and she'd rather not think about it. "Well," Ray began, taking the cup Julie had dried off and handed to him, "He might be dead, and I may not be able to catch him if he runs off, but I'll still find a way to make him regret it if he hurts you. Just make sure you're responsible with whatever you decide to do." 

Julie nodded a bit, laughing. Her dad trusted her to make the right choice here, and figure it out. And he'd still be there to protect her if things went wrong. 

She was so glad to have a dad like him. 

\--

December 24th was a good day. Reggie and Carlos hung out, Julie had lunch with her dad and aunt, Alex and Luke wrote some songs in the studio. They all watched Christmas movies late into the night. 

Caleb's plan may have been intended to hurt them, but it only made them happier. Maybe things would change when school started back up, or when Victoria realized what was going on. But right now, everyone was pretty happy.

For the first time ever, Carlos experienced what having a big brother was like, even if it wasn't a biological relationship. For the first time in a while, Reggie felt happy around people he saw as his family. Alex experienced what it was like to have a supportive parent-like figure, who didn't care that he was gay. Luke felt less lonely, and realized how much he appreciated spending time with others. 

And Ray kind of liked having more kids around. He liked being a dad, and helping people when he could. 

Maybe that's why he ran out to get very last minute gifts for each of the boys, despite not knowing them that well, or for long. Maybe that's why he bough Alex a pride flag, and Luke a guitar pick and new notebook, and Reggie a new leather jacket. Maybe it was because he liked making these kids feel safe, and loved, when they hadn't had that in a while.

Christmas morning was also a good day. They opened presents, and told stories, and got to know each other. They had _fun._

"Merry Christmas, everyone," Ray spoke once all gifts were opened. 

"Thanks for the presents, you really didn't have to get us anything." Luke said, running his thumb over the binding of his new song-writing notebook. 

"Yeah, it was really nice." Reggie agreed, pulling his new jacket on. He worried a bit about the price, but he knew he'd probably feel bad if he knew exactly how much was spent, so he just took the gift gratefully. 

"Yeah, thank you very much." Alex muttered, looking at the rainbow pride flag across his lap. He looked close to tears. Not because it upset him, more because he was happy, and shocked. He didn't let himself cry, though, putting the flag back in it's bag until he could find a place to hang it in the studio. 

"You're welcome. It was all last minute stuff, whatever I could find. I'm sure next year you'll get better stuff," he joked. 

"You don't have to get us anything-"

Ray held his hand up, cutting off Reggie's words. "I'm doing it because I want too. You guys will be treated just like my biological children from here on out. That includes Christmas gifts."

That shut the boys up. After presents, they watched more Christmas movies, and they eventually went out the play in the snow. And they hung out with Victoria when she came to visit, dropping off presents and food. 

Ray's promise, to treat the boys just like his own children, made everyone come to the realization that they already saw as family. They cared about each other.

All Caleb's schemes did was bring them together, and in the end, make things better for everyone. Things would be pretty much perfect once Willie was allowed to leave the club again. 

That Christmas, and Caleb's "curse" would _never_ be forgotten. 

_Because The Christmas "Curse" is what made them family._


End file.
